Texas Gov. Rick Perry was invited to Commonwealth Club of California in San Francisco to speak about biofuel, solar and wind energy, as well as take a trip down memory lane on being a Republican candidate during the 2012 presidential campaign. He ended up creating a buzz, however, when he compared being gay to being an alcoholic. Mark Matthews reports. (Published Friday, June 13, 2014)

Texas Gov. Rick Perry was invited to Commonwealth Club of California in San Francisco to speak about biofuel, solar and wind energy, as well as take a trip down memory lane on being a Republican candidate during the 2012 presidential campaign.

So it was an unwelcome surprise to many in the liberal-leaning city when Perry ended up comparing homosexuality to alcoholism - in a story that took a life of its own on social media across the country hours after he spoke.

For example, California Lt. Gov. Gavin Newsom, a Democrat who married the first same-sex couples in San Francisco when he was mayor in 2004, tweeted that Perry "must apologize for (his) ignorant and hateful remarks," noting also that it is Gay Pride month. Newsom went to rehab for alcoholism in 2007.

"Whether or not you feel compelled to follow a particular lifestyle or not, you have the ability to decide not to do that," Perry said. "I may have the genetic coding that I'm inclined to be an alcoholic, but I have the desire not to do that, and I look at the homosexual issue the same way."

Perry's office sent out a standard email on Thursday, not specifically adressing his views on being gay and having a drinking problem.

"The governor supports traditional marriage and believes that marriage is between one man and one woman," Perry spokeswoman Lucy Nashed wrote. "He has been clear on his position that each state has the right to define marriage to reflect the views of its citizens."

Though the crowd at the InterContinental Mark Hopkins hotel on Nob Hill was full of Perry supporters, Perry's responsel drew a "murmur of disbelief," the San Francisco Chronicle reported. The Business Journal said members of the audience actually hissed.

By contrast, Perry didn't mention the controversy on his Twitter feed. He felt the event prompted "great discussion."

The national group, Human Rights Campaign, also took grave offense to Perry's remarks. On its website, spokesman Fred Sainz said: "Although he may not have the 'genetic coding' to think before he speaks, Rick Perry, M.D. should have a real conversation with actual doctors before voicing his expertise on these issues. Every major mental health and medical organization in the country has condemned practices aimed at changing a person’s sexual orientation.”